The train driver for the maiden journey under the Bosphorus was Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, accompanied by a number of senior national and Municipal Government figures, including Minister for Transport, Binali Yıldırım, and Istanbul Mayor, Kadir Topbaş.

The ride from Üsküdar on the Asian side to Sirkeci on the European side of the Bosphorus strait took just six minutes.

As well as being the world's first subway connecting two continents, the Marmaray Tunnel is also the world's deepest immersed tube tunnel, with sections up to 60 metres below sea level.

In addition to the 13.6 kilometres Bosphorus crossing, the project will also see a further 63km of suburban train lines upgraded, creating a new high-capacity rail line which will carry up to 75,000 passengers per hour in both directions.

"The Marmaray project is the dream of our ancestors," said Erdoğan.

"It has been our privilege to realise it and complete it.

"We will be travelling between continents, from Asia to Europe and back again.

"This project will link the Beijing-London rail line.

"It is a major undertaking that will also connect to the Kars-Tbilisi-Baku line.

"Building the high-speed rail network in our time is a source of pride for us.

"We do not just talk about things: we build them."

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan drives a train through the Marmaray Rail Tunnel as he tested the world's first intercontinental subway

Officials are hailing the test as an example of the progress Istanbul has made since it first bid for the Olympics - the 2000 Games awarded to Sydney - when it had no metro line. 

By 2005, when it bid unsuccessfully for the 2012 Olympics, awarded to London 2012, that had extended to 265km. 

"In Istanbul, we have been dreaming of a tunnel connecting Europe and Asia for hundreds of years," said Hasan Arat, chairman of Istanbul 2020. 

Today, we bring the ancient Silk Road from Beijing to London into the 21st century.

"Completing the Marmaray Tunnel under the Bosphorus strait was a commitment we made to the IOC in our Candidature File, and it's a commitment we have kept, thanks to the strong alignment between the Istanbul 2020 Games Plan and Turkey's 2023 Master Plan.

"This great engineering feat is an example of how Istanbul 2020 is already delivering on its promise to provide an efficient transport experience for athletes and the Olympic Family: a fast, direct connection between Asia, Europe and our Olympic Park.

"We have so many iconic locations in Istanbul that we made the decision to activate the entire city in our Games Plan.

"New infrastructure like the Marmaray tunnel will allow us to really immerse the Olympic Family in a magical city-wide celebration.

"This is Istanbul's fifth bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games and we have never been better prepared to welcome the Olympic Movement."

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